All three women had their reasons for wanting the win: Lynch said she never actually lost the belt, Carmella wants to prove that she still deserves the belt, and Flair claims she has nothing to prove to anyone.

The fight was physical, with counter after counter. The sequence that ended the match, though, separated the women from The Man.

Flair got Carmella into a Figure Four, bridging to a Figure Eight. Lynch breaks it up from the top rope with a dropkick before Carmella taps. While Flair is down, Lynch tries to put her in the Dis-Arm-Her. Carmella stops the hold with a kick, leading eventually to a deadly looking spear from Flair, knocking Lynch flat. Carmella gets a little too comfy, and Lynch takes advantage of the moment, putting Carmella in a Dis-Arm-Her.

It’s too much for Carmella, and the Staten Island Princess taps out. Becky Lynch wins the triple-threat match, and gets her shot at the title she really never lost.

At the end of the match, while Lynch is taking her in-ring victory lap, Asuka comes out with the belt, and the two take inaudible jabs at each other, while the show fades out.

Most fans expected Lynch to enter the Rumble match, and win, getting her chance at Rousey at WrestleMania. Instead, we have Sasha Banks vs. Ronda Rousey, and Becky Lynch vs. Asuka: two matches we didn’t see coming.

Tune into WWE Royal Rumble on Jan. 27 at Chase Field in Phoenix to see who goes home with the big prize.

Are you happy with Becky’s win? Who do you think will leave the Royal Rumble as the SmackDown Champion?